Monday, August 06, 2012

We
just received word that earlier this week prisoners at Central in
Raleigh voted to end their hunger strike, started on July 16th in
protest of conditions on Unit 1. We have not heard from prisoners at
Bertie or Scotland. Small groups of prisoners at Foothills CI and Tabor
CI have also said they have joined the protest.

The strike was organized to take aim at the fundamental conditions of
sensory deprivation, psychological and physical torture, and abuse that
characterize solitary confinement, and for that matter, prisons in
general. It was also catalyzed by the need for law libraries for
prisoners to be able to be better organize and defend themselves in the
legal realm.

Some of the short term demands of prisoners, such as tools with which
to clean cells, clearing the windows to the outside, and other demands
have already been granted, but more significant demands have been put to
the unit manager and have yet to be addressed. For the strikers
involved, it seems like this strike was a way to garner much needed
attention towards their conditions, as well as demonstrate to other
prisoners that it is indeed possible to organize across lines of race or
gang status, and to do so with meaningful support and solidarity from
the outside.

At least one of the strikers, Jamey
Wilkins, who has also been active in a successful lawsuit against
guards, is facing reprisals for his involvement in organizing activity.
Despite not having write-ups or infractions, he is being recommended for
Supermax. Outside supporters are strongly encouraged to continue to
call in or demonstrate on his and others’ behalf; prison officials are
trying to send a warning to others who would organize or rebel, and they
must be opposed resolutely.

In related news, several of the “Strong 8″ prisoners, eight men who
refused to continue to work in the face of unaddressed labor grievances
in Central’s kitchens, have been taken off I-Con status and allowed back
to general population, despite their involvement in the hunger strike.
Others have remained on solitary due to (the admin. claims) infractions.

This hunger strike has garnered a good deal of attention, and the
support and solidarity of a number diverse groups. At least four
solidarity demonstrations have occurred, as well as a growing swell of
support from alternative and social media sources and call-in days from
all over the country. So it seems appropriate to end this update with
some words of thanks from the strikers with regards to outside support
and protest:

“I had assumed that the strike was over until Friday when I heard
it on NPR! I’m going to practice solidarity with my fellow activists
abroad and push out 2 or 3 days…I really appreciate you guys on your
activism and bringing things together. Stay solid!” -Foothills CI,
Morganton, NC

“I’ve been housed on Unit 1 since may 15th 2009 for assault on
police back in 2007. So I know all the bullshit that goes on here at
central or unit 1. I heard y’all by my cell window good around 1pm or
130 pm on Sunday, but i couldn’t understand the words that was said
because everybody on unit one was kicking their cell doors.” – Central
Prison, Raleigh, NC

“Keep up the good work all the up and tell everybody we do
really, really appreciate all the help of stepping up for prisoners
period.” – Central Prison, Raleigh, NC

“I told a couple guys about the hunger strike and we began a
little something of our own. It’s only like four of us, but four is
plenty!” - Tabor CI, Tabor City, NC

“Thank your for the demo! I heard it from outside. The solidarity is felt.” – Central Prison, Raleigh, NC

Hopefully this strike can be seen and felt as a beginning. Not to
editorialize, but we would urge fellow supporters on the outside not to
see this sort of flare-up as a simple quest for certain demands, like
toilet brushes or cleaner windows or even law libraries. This kind of
moment, even on the small scale in which it has occurred here, can only
be fully understood as a struggle for dignity and freedom in the face of
the largest and arguably the most brutal system of policing and human
warehousing in the history of the world. The forms of these moments will
grow and change: it may be a hunger strike today and a riot tomorrow,
or a quiet study group the next day. But the content of these struggles,
at least for some, remains a burning desire for liberty set against an
institutional matrix of petty tyrannies and genocidal abuses that
characterize all prisons everywhere.

Break the Chains.info

is a news and discussion forum for supporters of political prisoners, prisoners of war, politicized social prisoners, and victims of police and state intimidation.

This blog is organized and updated autonomously of the disbanded Break the Chains Prisoner Support Network formerly based in Eugene, Oregon. While this online project shares several of the same concerns as the old Break the Chains collective, no formal organization exists behind the current web presence.

"I will never surrender my pride and dignity nor allow the system to 'cut my tongue' and I will always, without fear, speak out against these war crimes and crimes against humanity, no matter if I spend the rest of my life in a prison cage, and draw my last breath of air laying down in this steel bed surrounded by razor-wire fences and cages, and its prison policies that are designed to destroy one's humanity…."